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Emily’s Piano

by Charlotte Gingras; Stéphane Jorisch, illus.

Before Emily’s family began to fall apart, their grand piano was a source of joy – “happiness in a box.” Even after Emily’s much older sisters moved out and her mother stopped playing the piano, Emily would sit underneath it, reading or daydreaming. When this story begins, the piano has just been sold, Emily’s grandmother has been placed in a home, and Emily has moved into a small apartment with her parents, whose marriage is ending on a very sour note. Emily, who’s 10, decides that the loss of the piano was instrumental in the family’s disintegration and sets out to find it in the nearby residential districts of Montreal.

This is a charming book in many ways, because of the likeable voice of its narrator and the unusual combination of a psychologically sophisticated narrative and a simple, accessible chapter book format. The narrative is smart, funny, and in places quite sad. Occasionally, Emily’s insights seem too adult for her, for instance when she is able to attribute her mother’s obsession with gold paint and her parents’ fights to “sadness and the feeling of being abandoned.” But for the most part, her perspective is convincing. The design of the book, with its small dimensions, generously distributed illustrations, and short chapters, makes it a friendly prospect for readers under 12 years old.

The first edition of this book, published in French as La boite à bonheur, won a Mr. Christie’s Award in 2003. Charlotte Gingras, who lives in Montreal, has written at least eight other children’s books, two of which have won GG Awards. I hope that more of them will be translated into English.

 

Reviewer: Bridget Donald

Publisher: Annick Press

DETAILS

Price: $19.95

Page Count: 64 pp

Format: Cloth

ISBN: 1-55037-913-5

Released: Sept.

Issue Date: 2005-12

Categories:

Age Range: 9-12

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